SHAH ALAM – An eight-year-old boy in northern Thailand was discovered to be unable to speak and could only bark, after reportedly being left in the care of his family’s six dogs for several years.
According to the South China Morning Post, authorities uncovered the situation following a tip-off from a concerned school headteacher and a child rights campaigner.
The child, who hadn’t attended school in over two years, was meant to be enrolled using government funding.
Media reports stated that his mother had been receiving around 400 baht (RM52) per month in education support but had failed to send him to class.
Local residents described how the boy’s 46-year-old mother would often beg for food and money in nearby villages and temples, leaving her son alone in their dilapidated wooden home in Uttaradit province, with only the dogs for company.
Officials intervened on Monday after the school principal raised the alarm with Paveena Hongsakul, a politician and founder of a charity for women and children.
Upon raiding the house, authorities found the child living with his mother and 23-year-old brother, both of whom later tested positive for drug use.
“He didn’t speak at all, only barked. It was heartbreaking,” said Paveena, who led the rescue operation alongside local police.
The boy had never attended nursery, and although he briefly visited school at the age typically associated with Year 2, he was never permitted to return.
“After receiving the educational allowance, his mother just kept him at home,” Paveena said.